"For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake." -- 2 Corinthians 4:5

     There are many, many ways in which false preachers preach themselves and avoid preaching Christ and the Gospel of salvation conditioned on Him alone. When does a man preach himself instead of preaching Christ?

1. When he preaches salvation, any part of it, conditioned on the sinner in any way to any degree instead of salvation conditioned totally upon Christ.
2. When he preaches justification before God based upon any other ground but the blood and the righteousness of Christ imputed, and when he makes no efforts to exclude any contribution from the sinner's best efforts as to the ground of salvation.
3. When he removes the offense of the Gospel by refusing to say that any who are ignorant of or not submitted to Christ's righteousness imputed are lost and their deeds are evil. When he speaks peace where there is no peace to gain the praise and admiration of men.
4. When he refuses to preach repentance clearly and let sinners know that everything before belief of the gospel wherein Christ’s righteousness is revealed, no matter how moral or religious, is dead works, fruit unto death, and acts of open idolatry as they are the fruit of self-righteousness.
5. When he seeks to motivate his hearers to obedience, worship, love, good works, and godliness based on something other than the absolute certainty of salvation conditioned on Christ alone, the assurance of true faith. When he seeks to motivate them with legal fears of punishment and legal doubts as to the certainty of their final glory.